Destiny's Darkness
by Rena-sly
Summary: The past twenty four years have been calm and quiet. However, something even more powerful than Voldemort is on the rise, a new force that is able to destroy the Wizarding World. Can it be defeated?
1. Lamplight

Disclaimer: I don't own any Harry Potter characters, I just own whatever characters that have come from my brain and their personalities. J.K. Rowling is a genius, I am not.

A/N: I've found inspiration again! Finally, after so long, I've started writing. I've watched way too much anime and listened to too many awesome Japanese anime theme songs… but I've developed ideas from all of this and have created a storyline that you readers will hopefully like. I've also spent hours researching specific facts, known or unknown, about the Harry Potter series so I can make the best out of this and please you, as well as myself. This fan fiction is dealing with the next generation, so spoilers are bound to show up for those who have not completed the Harry Potter series. With that, please read and enjoy! Don't forget to review!

The Lamplight

Deep within a blackened forest was a single lamplight. It floated through the trees, illuminating only a small patch of darkness. This forest was said to be a dangerous place at this particular time of night. Anyone who entered it was strongly cautioned against doing so, and in some cases forbidden, for there were certain creatures within the wood that held the desire to drink the blood of an unsuspecting or fearful boy or girl.

The light continued to search the darkness through unsettled fog, flickering every so often. As it got further into the forest, the fog became thicker and more difficult to penetrate. Suddenly, the light flickered out. The lamp slowly drifted to the ground, settling down softly. A small white light was emitted just above the lantern. It was hardly any better than the lamp at this point, but would have to do. A wizard's wand was visible from behind it, as well as a pale hand. The carrier of the wand turned around to head back in the previous direction, however, ended up catching a glimpse of another tiny pale glow in the distance. Rather than ignoring it, the wand's owner decided to follow it.

The light was bouncing up and down at a pulsing rate, weaving in and out through the trees. It was running. There was nothing for its follower to do but start to run as well. They traveled until they had almost reached a break in the trees, where a small clearing was dimly lit. Something dark fell in front of the pursuer, vanquishing the light, and causing a loud terrified cry.

Watching this from behind a tree, the follower saw a set of claws grasping at long blonde hair and restraining a face with panicked, glowing green eyes. It was a girl. She was holding the wand that had emitted the light. The creature pinning her down was shrouded in black robes, unrecognizable, and appeared to be changing slightly with every passing second.

Held down, the girl tried to use her wand, but the creature swiped at her hand and threw it aside. It was far within reach and she couldn't move. Her eyes darted around, hoping for some form of help. She was nowhere near as powerful as the monster was. One mighty hand caressed her neck, and the girl began to scream in pain as two sharp fangs punctured her flesh, drawing up blood. Suddenly, she saw the light from the wand of her unintentional pursuer, who panicked and quickly hid it from her sight. She reached out for it, and the cloaked fiend noticed, turning to glare in that direction with gleaming blood red eyes. The creature let the girl go, and headed towards the person in the trees.

The individual pointed their wand towards the monster, stumbling with words, "A- Avada-"

"P-please!" the girl choked.

"SECTUMSEMPRA!" the person hollered.

A red light shot towards the monster, illuminating the face of the caster. He was a pale young man with short flaxen hair.

His cloudy gray eyes widened in fear as he heard the girl scream yet a third time. He thought the girl was being attacked by yet another vicious creature, however, the original monster had disappeared the moment the curse was cast. The girl was shaking on the ground, blood spurting from her body, surrounded by a blue light. The curse hadn't hit the fiend at all; instead it was directly cast at the girl.

The boy rushed towards her, desperately trying to think of a way to stop the curse and the gushing blood. A moment later his head began to feel heavy, his vision blurred, and a stabbing pain in his chest sent him collapsing to the ground next to her. It was then that he recognized her. He could hear her cries of pain fade as he blacked out.

Sometimes, even the use of a wand will fail to help you.

:

"Wake up! Everyone's getting off the train now!" yelled an excited young boy.

"What?" another boy shot up in panic.

"Hurry up!" the boy danced on his heels, then turned as he slammed the compartment door shut.

"Oh, my head…"

Dark clouds swarmed in and consumed a navy sky. Rain started pouring down heavily, beating covered carriages making their way to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The howling wind muted the conversations of the students. Golden lights shined brightly from the windows of the school creating a warm, inviting atmosphere. Everyone was anxious to enter into the comfort of the building. They jumped out of the carriages and stampeded in doors to avoid getting drenched in water, tracking in mud and gravel.

A sixth year Slytherin rushed into the illuminated entrance of the school, looking around impatiently for someone he could talk to. Hearing his name, he headed over to dark haired boy in his year, who was wearing similar attire.

"Alistair, how are you?" he asked, brushing a piece of blonde hair out of his eyes.

"Just fine," the other Slytherin boy answered, looking at someone in the distance.

They watched as a girl came closer to them. She was a Ravenclaw student in their year. Her shoulder length dark chocolate hair was windblown.

"Alistair," she said, nodding 'hello' and smiling at the long dark haired boy.

"Hi, Mina," he said, and then looked at his friend, who was staring at her with cold gray eyes.

The girl stopped for a moment before passing them, then quickly glanced at Alistair's friend, and stifled, "Malfoy," nodding promptly before moving on.

"Malfoy, you okay?" Alistair questioned, shaking him slightly.

He didn't answer, turned away from his friend and stormed into the Great Hall.

Inside, everyone was seated at their designated house table, anxious to feast upon the food which would soon be in front of them. They watched as the new first year students were sorted and welcomed warmly into their new houses. After the sorting was completed the Headmistress welcomed all, new and those returning, with a speech to start off the new school year. Finally, with great pleasure, the students and staff began to dine on the food they had been waiting all night for.

"Lucy, have you seen Vince?" Mina asked a Hufflepuff girl in the Entrance Hall after the feast.

"I thought I saw him with Alice. As usual, right?" she replied, shaking her head.

"I see. He spends a lot of time with her…"

"They're friends. They've known each other since they were little," she said, and adjusted her yellow headband in the window. Her chocolate brown hair was messy.

"Whatever," Mina walked off.

"What's the matter with her?" Rose Weasley walked up to Lucy.

"She's upset because of Vince. She has to understand that Alice is only his friend. Though, he is a little overprotective of her."

"Oh." Rose sighed.

"Well, I've gotta get to my dorm. I'll see you tomorrow in class?"

"Of course! Al will be there too! Wonder what that boy is getting into now…" Rose waved goodbye as she ran down the hallway towards the staircases.

She raced up the stairs, eager to get to the Gryffindor dormitory. On her way she encountered a staircase blocked by two fallen portraits, who were screaming out for assistance. Noticing one of the professors shortly behind her, she decided to take another path to get out of the way. Racing up a set of stairs, she caught her foot on one of the steps and tripped. She gasped, and sat down against a wall to look at her knee, which was now slightly skinned.

"I haven't heard from you all summer, I just want to spend time with you!" a boy's voice came from behind the corner.

"Look, I just need to be alone right now. Okay?" a girl replied.

"I don't understand! You've been alone all summer! Don't you care about-?"

"Vincent! Just shut up and leave me-"

There was silence for a moment.

"No! Stop it! I-I'm sorry. I just can't handle this right now!" the girl cried, running from around the corner and down the stairs. She hadn't even noticed Rose sitting on the floor right next to the stairs.

"Alice?" Rose said, recognizing the blonde haired Ravenclaw girl who had just passed by her.

She stood up and walked around the corner. Vincent was standing next to the window, staring out at the stormy sky. There was no one else around. Rose headed towards him and he turned to her. He looked defeated. His brown eyes showed signs of anger and pain from behind his glasses.

"Are you going to be alright?" Rose asked softly.

"Sure, I'll be fine," he said dully, running his hands through his short mousy brown hair.

She walked with him in silence all the way to the Gryffindor common room.

"Goodnight," Vincent said hollowly.

"Goodnight. See you tomorrow," Rose said, trying to smile.

He turned away just as she noticed blood on his lower lip, and opened her mouth to speak, but he was already halfway up the stairs.

:

The next morning Alice walked into Defense Against the Dark Arts with a dark cloud hovering over her. She ignored everything going on around her and sat in the nearest empty seat closest to the back of the room. The person next to her looked at her as her head slammed down on the desktop.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

She didn't respond.

"Fine then, be a bitch and ignore me."

"All right class, today we're going to practice blocking the incarcerous spell. You may use whatever form of shielding charm you'd like. For those of you on the attacking end please do not suffocate your partner. You will be partnered up with the person you're currently sitting next to," the professor said.

"This is going to be fun…" Alice's partner sighed, "You are on defensive, okay?"

Again, Alice didn't respond.

The class headed into the next room to practice. Alice and her partner stood at the back of the room. She wasn't paying attention to what was going on and just stood there, blankly looking at the floor.

"Alice! Are you ready?" her partner asked.

"What's wrong, Malfoy?" Albus Potter said, looking over at the two while he blocked a shot from Rose.

"She's spaced out!" Malfoy answered.

"Maybe she's just bored. Try attacking her." Rose suggested, looking sadly at Alice.

"Okay."

He was just about to cast incarcerous when black ropes shot out from Alice's wand. She wasn't paying any attention to Scorpius or the spell she had just cast.

"Alice! What are you doing? Let Malfoy go!" Rose said.

Alice looked up and saw Scorpius wrapped in black ropes that were squeezing him tighter with every passing moment. The vines continued to strangle Malfoy. Alice's face looked blank, and she was unreceptive to her classmates screams.

"Expelliarmus," Mina said boringly, pointing at Alice's wand.

It fell to the floor and the ropes receded back into the wand.

"Thank you, Miss Jacobs. Miss Henderson, pay attention!" the professor warned her as she bent down to pick up her wand. "You'll end up hurting him."

"Alice, are you feeling well? You're acting awfully strange," Lucy said.

Suddenly, Scorpius started flailing his arms and screaming in pain, running around in a circle. Red welts began to appear on his arms.

"Henderson's using a stinging hex!" Scorpius hollered.

"Alice!" Vincent ran over to her and shook her. "Snap out of it!"

"What's wrong with her?" Lucy asked, concerned.

"Just make her stop!" Scorpius cried.

"Miss Henderson! Stop hurting him immediately!" the professor yelled.

She didn't listen. Everyone was looking at Alice and Vincent. He stared deeply into her eyes, trying to get her to concentrate on him.

"P-please! H-help me!" Scorpius screamed.

Her eyes darted towards Scorpius. Suddenly, Alice's eyes closed and she collapsed against Vincent like a rag doll. The stinging hex cast upon Scorpius had stopped, and he was covered in red welts, bleeding slightly.

"I'm taking Alice to the hospital wing," Vincent said, picking her up in his arms.

"Mr. Malfoy, you go with Mr. Locke too," the professor said, waving them off. "Class is dismissed."

:

Scorpius followed Vincent, who was running to the hospital wing. His arms and face were feeling the after affects of the stinging hex. He had no idea what had come over Alice, or if she would suddenly wake up and begin to attack him again.

"Was she possessed or something?" Scorpius asked aloud.

"Look, Malfoy, I don't know what happened to her! I'm just worried that it's going to happen again and she'll end up killing herself!" Vincent hissed, stopping in his tracks and looking at Scorpius.

"I didn't even ask you! And you shouldn't just worry about if she kills herself! What about me? She could've murdered me in front of the whole class!"

"I think I'd feel better if she did kill you! Maybe then I'd be able to figure out why the hell she did that! I care a hell of a lot more about her than you. Idiot!"

"That way you looked at her when she attacked me… you were controlling her, weren't you? You're trying to kill me!"

"Why the hell would I do that? I have no reason! She went berserk on her own!"

"So someone else controlled her, then? Who the hell wants to kill me? I'm nothing!"

"Exactly! You finally figured it out dumbass! You're worthless! A worthless waste of a wizard!"

"You stop there, asshole!" Scorpius pointed his wand at Alice. "You're girl gets it."

"Don't you dare try to hurt her! You cast once and you're head is mine!" Vincent grasped Alice tighter.

It was then that Scorpius noticed something rather odd. "What's wrong with her neck?"

"What? Nothing."

"But her neck has… holes in it.

"It's... I don't know what it is! Let's get her to the hospital wing. Maybe it's got to do with what happened," Vincent turned around and started running again.

Scorpius paused for a moment and then ran off to catch up to him.

:

When they reached the hospital wing Madame Pomfrey dealt with Scorpius first, and recommended he stay the night to heal from the after affects. He decided to remain there overnight and spent his day watching Alice, in hopes of avoiding another attack. Meanwhile, Vincent explained as much as he could to Pomfrey, but she couldn't think of anything that could have possessed her to attack Scorpius in such a way. With that, Vincent skipped his classes and stayed by Alice's side to wait until she woke.

"Are you going to stay here all night?" Scorpius asked.

"Yes. I want to be here in case anything else happens. I'm not leaving her, especially not with you!" Vincent growled.

"You're dedicated, Locke. Alice means a lot to you, doesn't she?"

"The difference between life and death, pretty much. I've known her since we were six years old. This, I guess, is my way of making it up to her."

"I see. But what do you mean by 'making it up to her'?"

"I was distant towards her a while back. I guess I got scared for some reason. I'm weak, and I keep thinking that she doesn't want that. Though, she really doesn't seem to care. It's difficult for someone like you to understand."

Scorpius sighed, "You think a lot don't you."

"Yes. So?" Vincent sat down in a chair next to Alice.

"No reason."

Eventually, Scorpius fell asleep, leaving Vincent all alone to contemplate about what happened earlier. He knew that she had lost control, but didn't know how. Maybe it had been a spell of some sort to send her into a berserk state. Or was someone else controlling her? He kept replaying it over in his mind until he ended up falling asleep in his chair.

Several hours later Scorpius woke up. His head was throbbing and he was cold. Rubbing his eyes to lift the grogginess, he got up and walked around the room a little bit. The welts, he noticed, had disappeared, and the stinging was gone. Looking outside, he could see that it was almost sunrise. He stared out at the sky, becoming lost the moment, forgetting everything from the previous day. He soon returned to reality though, as he heard coughing behind him.

Alice had finally woken up.


	2. Encounter

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or any characters, settings, etc. I am not J.K. Rowling. Any characters that aren't from the Harry Potter series are creations from within my brain.

A/N: Yay! Chapter number two! Hope you guys liked the first one, and will continue to read my work throughout its many chapters. Chapter two is significantly shorter than chapter one, but I still hope you'll enjoy it as much as you did the first. Please, read and review!

Encounter

Scorpius drew out his wand. This time he would be ready to attack Alice with everything he had. This time he wouldn't lose. Watching her as she sat up, he stood, waiting for her to make a move. However, she looked around the room and then at Vincent, not intending to get up. A look of confusion settled on her face. Scorpius became disappointed, and preceded back towards his bed.

Just then Alice spoke, "Why am I here?"

Scorpius jumped and turned to face her. "You don't remember what happened?"

"What happened?"

"You honestly don't remember what you did?"

"No. I remember nothing. I don't know how I got here, or even waking up this morning. Or yesterday morning?"

"It happened yesterday."

"Well then, I don't remember waking up yesterday morning, so there's no reason I should be here. I shouldn't have skipped a day."

"Well you did! You almost ended up killing me in Dark Arts you stupid bitch!"

"Don't say that! I didn't do anything!"

"Yes you did! You almost suffocated me with the incarcerous curse and made me bleed to death with a stinging hex. You don't remember anything?"

"No. I don't."

"You're a liar!"

"She is _not_ a liar!" Vincent hollered at Scorpius.

"Vince, what happened to me?" Alice asked.

"I'm not sure. But you weren't yourself."

Scorpius sat back down on his bed. He growled and folded his harms.

"I don't remember anything. Please, tell me what happened." Alice looked concerned at Vincent.

"You came into class and you didn't seem like yourself. You were paired up with Scorpius to practice the incarcerous spell. While everyone else was practicing… you were spaced out, and when Scorpius tried to attack you, well, you suddenly incarcerated him. Then you released him, and cast a stinging hex on him. Everyone tried to get you to stop, but nothing seemed to help until you collapsed. That's how you ended up here."

"But I don't remember waking up yesterday morning."

"I can't explain that. I'm sorry, Alice."

"It's okay. Are you alright?" Alice asked, touching Vince's shoulder.

"I'm fine," he replied.

"I'm sorry about… before."

"I know. But, now is not the time to be talking about that."

"You aren't going to try and murder me again are you?" Scorpius suddenly said, glaring at Alice.

"No, Malfoy. I'm not going to hurt you." Alice smiled.

"Don't look at me like that!" Scorpius hissed.

"Idiot." Vincent sighed.

:

After receiving Madame Pomfrey's approval later that morning, the three left the hospital wing to go to class. Vincent had History of Magic while Alice and Scorpius had Potions. Once they reached the stairs, it was time for Vincent to separate from Alice and Scorpius.

"Are you sure you're feeling alright?" Vincent asked Alice worriedly.

"I'm fine, Vince. Calm down and go to class," Alice assured him.

"I just want to make sure that you aren't going to start attacking people again."

"I don't think there's anything wrong with me right now. I'll be fine."

"Alright. I'll see you at dinner tonight," Vince said as Alice waved goodbye. He then turned to Scorpius who was standing and shaking his head. "You! Keep an eye on her for me. If anything out of the ordinary happens, come find me! And don't leave her alone."

"I'm not taking your orders, Locke!" Scorpius growled, and then headed down the stairs to go to the dungeons.

When Scorpius reached the potions classroom he found Alice talking to the professor. He took the only unoccupied seat in the room. Alice walked over and took the place beside him.

"You're late Mr. Malfoy!" Professor Slughorn stated.

"Sorry…" Scorpius mumbled.

"You're not really sorry are you, Mr. Malfoy? We all know that you're only taking this class for the easy grades! Well, this is a new year, and you're not getting away with slacking this time. Now, class, you'll be pairing up. Groups of two, everyone," Professor Slughorn said.

The class burst into laughter directed towards Scorpius. He could feel his face go red. Alice looked at him curiously. It was a rare sight to see Scorpius look embarrassed.

"Class turn to page 342 in your textbooks, and complete the assignment on the board. All the required materials are in front of you."

The class settled down and began to work on their assignment. Scorpius stared at Alice for a moment, as she worked with his friend Alistair. He was stuck working with Mina, whom he hated. He didn't know why. She seemed to hate him too.

"Scorpius! Wolfsbane!" Mina hollered, smacking him in the back of the head.

"Ow! Sorry!" He lifelessly tossed the ingredient to her.

"Malfoy! Professor, Scorpius isn't helping me! Can I switch partners?" Mina complained.

"Alright then… Who do you want to work with?" Slughorn sighed.

"Alistair, please." Mina said, grinning slightly.

"Fine. Mr. Malfoy, please switch partners with Mr. Louis."

"Hi!" Alice said happily to Scorpius, smiling.

"Thank goodness I'm not working with her anymore…" Scorpius said under his breath.

"You're happy? She's very nice. What do you have against her?" Alice asked.

"Something."

The remainder of the class time went along smoothly, and nothing appeared out of place for the rest of the day. It was as if nothing had happened to Alice at all. When their final class ended Scorpius was waiting for Alice outside the room.

"Why are you still here?" Alice asked.

"Waiting for you." Scorpius started walking away from her.

She ran to catch up to him a few moments later. She felt unusual around him now, wondering why he was acting this way. The previous day she almost killed him, or so she now believed, and they had no relationship besides being simple acquaintances for the past five years. Was he just being nice? She shook her head violently and crashed into another student by accident, falling to the floor.

"Watch where you're going, bitch!" Mina shot at Alice, standing up and dusting herself off.

Alice's eyes went wide as she turned around on her hands and knees and picked up one of Mina's books. "I'm sorry, Mina! Let me-"

"Shut up! Get away from me." Mina glared at Alice and kicked her books away from her.

"Stop it! She apologized! Leave." Scorpius yelled at Mina. He was holding most of Alice's books in his arms. His face showed signs of an anger lurking deep inside him. It was then that Alice started to understand just why he hated her so much.

"Stick up for your little girlfriend, Malfoy. She tried to murder you yesterday! Now you defend her? What the hell is wrong with you?" Mina laughed darkly.

Scorpius was silent, a free hand slipped into his pocket and grasped at his wand. Alice just stared at him. She was greatly confused. He was trying to protect her, and the girl whom she thought was so nice in the past seemed to be on the verge of attempting to hurt her.

"Scorpius…" Alice said breathily.

"Shut up." Scorpius snapped.

Alice winced. Finally, she stood up, directing her gaze towards Mina. Scorpius was ready to fight, bringing out his wand. Mina snickered, looked at Scorpius pathetically and turned around without another word. She laughed lightly as she walked away, leaving her books scattered around the floor behind her.

"Why…?" Alice could barely speak. Scorpius returned his wand to his pocket and grabbed Alice's shoulder. Without speaking, he guided her down the hallway, still carrying her books.

:

All during supper Alice thought about the encounter she had with Mina. She didn't understand anything, and it swirled around in her brain. Mina hardly knew Alice, but acted so nice to her during class and in the Ravenclaw dormitory. Was Alice just shrouding Mina in a veil of respectability, because she barely knew her, or was she just oblivious to what Mina truly was? The past five years blurred away, and all she could think of was that moment in the hallway. Finally, for the first time, Alice was experiencing the feeling of anger towards Mina. What did she do wrong? She apologized, and was even going to help Mina with her books. It was as if the girl she once knew was looking down upon her. Alice's anger faded into fear. She started panicking. What if Mina was going to try and hurt her? The look in Mina's eyes had shown a strange thirst for a fight, Alice recalled. She knew that Mina wanted to fight her, alone, without Scorpius there to interfere. The only thing Alice could think of now was to try and avoid Mina. Unfortunately, they had every class together and, as an added bonus, shared the same common room. Alice sighed, defeated in her mind, believing that there was no way of evading Mina. Then there was the subject of Scorpius. She knew he wasn't acting normal, defending her when she had recently attempted to murder him. Suddenly, she felt pressure against her shoulder and jumped in panic.

"Whoa! Calm down!" Scorpius laughed, sitting down next to her at the Ravenclaw table. It was then that Alice realized that they were the only two in the Great Hall. "You were out of it good! Sorry for scaring you."

"Oh. That's okay. What time is it?"

"Just after ten."

"Seriously? How long have I been like this?"

"A few hours… Don't worry; no one thought anything of it." Scorpius grinned slyly.

"Have you seen Mina?"

"It bothers you, doesn't it?"

"I'm just worried that she'll…" Alice was getting worked up to the point where tears welled up in her eyes.

Scorpius took her by the shoulders and looked her in the eyes. "Don't worry. Nothing will happen. I promise. Now let's go. It's late." His cold gray eyes were unusually sincere, and there was just the slightest bit of warmth within them to convince her.

They headed out into the Entrance Hall. There was no one to be seen. Alice started up the stairs towards the Ravenclaw common room, but Scorpius grabbed her arm and pulled her back.

"Not that way. The Head students are guarding the stairs up there. We're taking another way." Scorpius said.

"But what if you're wrong and we get caught?" Alice worried.

"We won't get caught," He smirked.

"But-"

"Come on. Hurry!" Scorpius warned her, hearing heavy footsteps and a mumbling voice in the distance. They hurried back down the stairs and down the pathway to the dungeons.

Once in the dungeons, Alice followed Scorpius, having no idea where they were or where they'd end up. She felt almost that he was leading her in circles, continuing through a seemingly never-ending series of pathways and portrait holes. Eventually, they came to a portrait hole that led them to the west side of the school.

"We're almost there," Scorpius told her quietly, coming up on a doorway.

"Can we stop for a moment please?" Alice asked, sliding down to the floor against a wall.

"Fine." Scorpius shook his head and sighed heavily.

"I thought that Vincent was supposed to meet us earlier. Do you know what happened to him?"

"No. I never saw him though at dinner. Maybe he was busy."

"I see. I'm sort of worried about him…"

"You worry a lot, don't you?"

"Yeah. But I have my reasons."

"And I'm sure those reasons are good ones…" Scorpius said sarcastically.

Alice looked at him irritably and stood up again, ready to continue on. Passing through the now familiar passages of the school, Alice began to feel confident as they came closer to reaching the Ravenclaw dormitory. Soon they headed through the doorway to Ravenclaw Tower and up the high spiral staircase. At the top, Alice was quick to answer when questioned by the eagle doorknocker, and the door swung open immediately.

"Are you going to be alright getting back by yourself?" Alice asked Scorpius before heading through the doorway.

"I got the two of us here fine, right? It'll be simple from here on," he answered, smiling.

"Well, thank you for helping me. I appreciate it very much. I certainly say, you may look almost exactly like him, but you are nearly nothing like your father," she nodded.

"My father?" Scorpius was taken by surprise. He knew that she had never met his father, so why would she assume this? Scorpius had never told her about Draco, and it made him curious as to why she knew of his father.

Alice was about to explain her words when the door to the common room slammed shut behind her. She turned around to see Mina, standing with her arms folded, her long, wavy dark hair framing her face which was showing an expression of malice and determination. Alice couldn't move; she was petrified. Scorpius just stood there with a nasty glare towards Mina, who shook her head, smirked, and started down the stairs.

After Mina was long gone, Scorpius paid his attention to Alice, who remained as still as stone. "She's gone now. You can move," Scorpius assured her. "She won't lay a delicate little finger on you as long as I'm around."

"That's what I fear. When I'm alone, what will she do?" Alice squeezed her eyes tightly and cringed. "And what if she's gone off to tell someone that you and I were out after curfew?"

"She wouldn't do that. It's too easy. Besides you'll lose house points. I don't think she'd squeal on a fellow Ravenclaw."

"I should let you leave now, shouldn't I?"

"Yeah, I guess. I'll see you tomorrow though in class. We can talk then."

"Alright." Alice smiled weakly as she watched Scorpius descend the stairs. The common room door opened again to let her enter, and closed shortly after with a light thud.

:

"Well, anything to report?" a hooded figure asked another deep within the dungeons of Hogwarts.

"Nothing has happened yet," the low raspy voice replied.

"Yes. Nothing since that one _minor incident_ that almost destroyed our plans! What the hell were you thinking? This should've been over with months ago!"

"I know, brother. I'm gravely sorry. I wasn't strong enough. No need to worry, though, for I will dispose of the girl soon enough. I have a plan that _will_ work."

"It better or I may just have to dispose of you instead and kill her myself!"

"No! I will do it, brother! I swear I'll make this work!"

"I've changed my mind. Understand this… you bring her to me, alive. Get rid of anyone who tries to protect her."

"But what about her-"

"Just bring the damn girl to me! If you fail, you're dead."


	3. Game

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter and therefore am not J.K. Rowling. I own nothing except the characters and ideas that have come from my brain.

A/N: Chapter three! Yay! Please read and review! Also, thanks to CSIcorrespondent for revising this chapter!

Chapter 3

Several weeks had passed since what had happened to Alice but everything seemed to be returning to normal at Hogwarts. Even Mina appeared to be back to her previous self. The only thing that had changed, however, was that Scorpius continued to spend time with Alice outside of class.

The blossoming friendship between the two didn't please Vincent in the least. He would persistently ask Alice why she spent her time with Scorpius. He was even so bold as to ask about what she saw in him that made him worthy to be her friend. He would then continue on to explain how Scorpius would only end up hurting her, but she didn't care. She trusted him.

"Do you have everything with you?" Vincent asked Alice as he walked her to class one afternoon.

"Yes! I have all my books and supplies. I'm going to watch the Quidditch match after class, remember?" Alice replied irritably.

"Why are you going to watch that _stupid_ game? It's pointless! Passing a damn ball around…" Vincent retorted, grumbling to himself.

Alice stopped in her tracks and looked angrily at him. "I _enjoy_ watching Quidditch! Besides, Scorpius asked me to come and watch with him. It's Slytherin versus Ravenclaw!"

Vincent's hands formed fists. "Why are you always spending time with him? And don't give me any of this 'we're friends' bullshit again!"

"Alice!" A voice called from down the hall. Scorpius saw the pair and started towards them.

"Well, well, well. Speak of the devil!" Vincent hissed, narrowing his eyes at the boy.

"That's just it though, Vincent! He's my friend! Enough of this already!" Alice started walking again, towards Scorpius.

"Then just what am I to you, Alice?" Vincent snapped. He couldn't take much more of this.

With her back towards him she shot him another dirty look over her shoulder. "You are my friend, but you're just being an ass right now!"

"Hey," Scorpius said softly to Alice, looking slightly confused but recognizing the uneasy tension between her and Vincent.

"Good to see you," Alice smiled weakly.

They stood in silence for a moment. Vincent looked intently at the two, piercing an angry gaze towards Scorpius. Self control, he told himself, unclenching his fists.

"I'm glad I caught you before class. I've been meaning to ask you for a while now…" Scorpius started, breaking the silence, shooting a nervous glance at Vincent.

"Yes?" Alice asked curiously.

"Are you going to Hogsmeade tomorrow?" Scorpius asked. Vincent continued to glare at Scorpius, praying that Alice would read his mind.

"No," she replied, eliciting a small sigh of relief from Vincent.

"Oh, I see. Well, would you like to go with me?" Scorpius asked, making Vincent go red with anger.

"I've got…" Alice started, looking back at her angry friend and how disgusted he was with her. "I've got nothing better to do."

"Alice!" Vincent screamed in fury, unable to control his temper any longer.

"Get over it, Locke!" Scorpius hollered back at him, smirking. He slipped his arm around Alice's back guiding her down the hallway towards their classroom, leaving Vincent behind to steam.

:

After class Scorpius and Alice hurried to the Quidditch pitch for the game. It was the first time that season Slytherin would play against Ravenclaw. Clouds hovered above the pitch and a light rain started to fall down upon the players and cheering spectators.

Alice opened her navy umbrella to shield herself from the rain. Scorpius forced himself in next to her underneath her umbrella.

"What the hell are you doing?" Alice asked nervously, suddenly aware of their close proximity.

"I'm getting wet! You have an umbrella, so share!" Scorpius said with his face barely an inch from hers.

Alice sighed deeply. Her breath hung in the air for a few moments and she watched as it floated away and disappeared. A chaser bolted past her view and she returned to watching the game.

"Yeah! Ravenclaw scored again!" Alice exclaimed a few moments later after seeing one of the Ravenclaw chasers score a goal. "Slytherin is getting beaten to a pulp! One hundred and fifty to thirty!"

"Don't get so happy just yet… the snitch hasn't been caught yet," Scorpius smirked.

"Ooh, go! Go Christina!" Alice hollered at the Ravenclaw seeker who was very close to catching the snitch. "We'll see Malfoy."

Scorpius looked around at the Slytherin players. Slytherin's seeker was nowhere near the snitch, going around the pitch looking panicked. After realizing that the seeker for Ravenclaw was right on the snitches tail, Slytherin's seeker dove towards it. Shortly afterwards, the two were almost neck and neck. With the Ravenclaw seeker being just slightly faster, she inched herself closer, and grasped the snitch in her hand. It was all over.

A look of joy spread across Alice's face. She jumped up and down gleefully and hugged Scorpius unintentionally.

"Sorry," Alice said quickly, backing away from him and blushing slightly.

"You're happy. It's okay." Scorpius smiled at her. "Congrats on Ravenclaw's win."

"But Slytherin lost. Aren't you at least a little bit mad?" Alice asked.

The rain was pouring down heavily. Scorpius laughed under his breath and shook his head. Suddenly, he smiled softly at her and pulled her close, pressing his lips against hers.

A few seconds later he let her go. "I could care less," he muttered, a small smile gracing his lips. He turned and walked away from her, letting the rain soak his hair and clothes, laughing carelessly to himself.

All Alice could do was stand there stunned. She didn't even notice that her umbrella had fallen over, lifting the shield from the pouring rain, allowing herself to become drenched in water. She didn't know what to do. _Should I go after him?_ She realized now that tomorrow's trip to Hogsmeade would be very uncomfortable and automatically wanted to back out from going with him. She could fake sick or just pretend that she'd forgotten about it. Lying to him seemed to be the only option, although she hated the idea.

Not wanting to destroy their friendship, she became even more confused. One moment she wanted to go, but then her mind started to swarm with fear and reasons for her to stay away from Scorpius. Was Vincent really right about him? Scorpius hadn't hurt her though. He had only managed to make her very confused and a little bit scared. Well, maybe a little bit excited too, but she wasn't about to admit it.

Alice slowly started making her way back to the school. By the time she had gotten inside she was frozen and soaking wet. A few students passing by her noticed, but she ignored them for the most part, trudging up the grand staircase.

_Stupid! Why did Scorpius have to do that? _

:

After changing into dry clothes she headed straight for the library with her book bag swung over her shoulder. She couldn't attempt to have dinner. Her mind was too full of racing thoughts for her to be hungry. She found a place at a small empty table between two towering bookshelves, next to a window being tapped lightly by rain. She sat in one of the chairs closest to the window and sprawled her books in front of her. Rifling through her bag for a piece of parchment, she decided to work on a report for her Dark Arts class. She skimmed her books for important or interesting information that she could use for her assignment.

_I need this… but what about this page? These books contradict each other! Stupid idiotic books… stupid Scorpius! How dare he…what gave him the right?! Concentrate, Alice! Concentrate on the assignment, not that irritating boy who is causing you a great deal of confusion. _

She slammed her head down on her parchment and sighed heavily. Sitting up again, she started scratching away at her assignment. Once she reached over four pages her head hit the parchment again, her eyes closing from the exhaustion of staring at the letters in the books and her written work. Her quill rolled out of her hand and off the table.

She was woken several hours later by a loud thud. Lifting her head she saw that the library was now lit by bright candles. The window outside showed nothing but a pitch black wall. She looked ahead of her to see a boy her age sitting at her table, looking over three unusual looking books. They had decorative leather spines with silver, gold, and colorful ammolite covers and trim. The boy had long, layered dark brown hair tied up in a ponytail with two quills sticking out from the back like Chinese chopsticks. He had a very slender, soft face but his intense dark eyes and defined facial features showed his masculinity.

Suddenly, he looked up at Alice, his deep blue eyes penetrating through her. They seemed to look down at her with a certain smugness that she didn't like. She shook slightly as a chill spiraled through her body. She tried to focus on the books in front of her, but a feeling of uncomfortable warmth flooded over her and she glanced back up at the boy.

He was watching her every move. Alice lifted her head slightly and looked directly into his eyes for a split second, then tore her gaze away and focused on the ring piercing his right eyebrow.

He stood up and walked around the table towards Alice. Grabbing her by the wrists he restrained her in her chair. She felt herself becoming weaker under his grasp. When he let her go she couldn't move. Sitting like a doll, limp in her chair, the boy lifted her head slowly with his hand. From what she could see, it appeared he was examining her, but she couldn't ask what was happening; she was too exhausted to speak. Her vision began to blur and her eyes closed as she felt soft lips press against her forehead.

There was another loud thud.

Alice jolted awake and looked around, panicked. The dark haired boy had disappeared, and the books were replaced by regular old textbooks. When she looked up this time, she saw Scorpius sitting across from her, reading. She didn't understand.

_Where did that boy go? _

She felt a sharp pain in her right wrist and gasped.

"That must hurt. You should go to the nurse and get that cleaned up," Scorpius said plainly, his face blank.

Alice looked at her wrist. It was bloody and appeared to have marks on it. "Did you see anyone come past you when you came in here? Did you see someone tall with long dark hair?"

"No, I didn't see anyone. Are you sure it wasn't a dream? You were passed out for the longest time."

"But…" Alice didn't understand what was going on. One moment she was alone, the next with a complete stranger, and the next with someone whom she didn't really want to see.

"Go see Madame Pomfrey, get cleaned up and go to bed! I'll see you tomorrow," Scorpius ordered.

"Fine!" Alice gave in, looking at her bloody, cut wrist. She left her books lying scattered on the table and walked quickly out of the library.

Soon she reached the hospital wing and showed Madame Pomfrey her wrist.

"My dear, what happened to you?" Madame Pomfrey gasped.

"I don't know. I was in the library doing homework and fell asleep. Maybe the quill I was using dug into my skin while I was asleep," Alice explained, although having no idea what really happened.

"Well, let me get you cleaned up."

"Thank you."

After getting her wrist cleaned and wrapped in bandages, she left and headed to the Ravenclaw common room. Heading up the stairs, she couldn't stop wondering if what she experienced had been just a dream. _It felt so real…_ She collapsed onto her bed without changing and fell asleep.

:

Scorpius stood waiting impatiently for Alice the next morning outside the school entrance. He had her book bag hanging over his shoulder, full of everything she had left in the library the night before. After a few moments he heard hurried footsteps racing towards him.

"I'm sorry Scorpius! I overslept and…" Alice apologized, breathing heavily.

He handed her bag over. "Don't worry about it. You left this last night."

"Thank you," Alice said, nodding slightly.

"Now can we go?" Scorpius asked and Alice nodded once more, smiling.

It wasn't long before they arrived at Hogsmeade, the streets bustling with Hogwarts students and staff. A cool autumn breeze carried the cheerful noise floating all around.

Alice and Scorpius found a table inside The Three Broomsticks. Scorpius ordered a butterbeer for himself while Alice sat silently at the table with her hands hanging on the edge, staring deep into the wooden table. Shortly after Scorpius received his order and started slowly sipping away, watching Alice knowing that she was tense.

Suddenly there was a clink on the wood. Another mug of butterbeer was sitting in front of Alice.

"Thank you," Scorpius said nodding to waitress standing at their table.

Alice drew her attention towards Scorpius, looking slightly alarmed.

"What? You don't like it?" Scorpius questioned.

She shook her head and took a long drink.

"If it's about what happened yesterday…"

"Why?" Alice suddenly burst out.

"I just wanted to piss off your friend. He was standing two rows behind us. Besides, it was enjoyable for me." Scorpius smirked, but Alice just scowled at him.

"You're doing a fine job of making Vincent hate you more," she said, pausing slightly before continuing. "He thinks that you'll hurt me."

Scorpius leaned in towards her and spoke softly. "If I were you, I'd be thinking the opposite. Pay attention to how he acts… he's rather possessive."

"But I can't just leave him. He can't be all alone."

"Anyway, about yesterday… I was going to apologize to you in the library last night, but you were passed out when I got there and then the whole thing with your wrist sort of ruined the opportunity. I decided to put it off 'til today," he said, looking her in the eye. "So, I'm sorry if it bothered you. I was simply just trying to piss off that stupid asshole Locke. I'm also sorry if my calling him an asshole bothers you." Scorpius took a long swallow of his drink. _Not too sorry though._

"It's… okay. I understand that you hate-"

"Anyway, so if the way I acted yesterday didn't bother you, and you'd like to continue from there, feel free to tell me!"

"It bothered me…" Alice said quietly.

"Well, if you ever change your mind then," Scorpius murmured, smiling.

Alice shook her head violently. She continued to sip her butterbeer.

"By the way, how is your wrist?" Scorpius asked.

"It's sore, but it's okay other than that." Alice showed him her wrist, which was now pink and looked somewhat swollen.

"So how did you do that?"

"I have no idea. You said that I was asleep when you came, right?"

"Yes. I didn't notice anything bloody. There wasn't even a quill near you. I found the one you were using last night on the floor. It only had a little bit of ink on it, that's all."

"When did you come to the library last night?"

"I saw you pass out. You also kept muttering in your sleep."

"What was I saying?"

"Nothing understandable… except you said someone's name."

"What name?"

"Tristan."


	4. Stolen

Disclaimer: I am not J.K. Rowling. I own nothing created by her from the Harry Potter series. I only own my brain, and the ideas that generate from it.

A/N: Chapter 4! Thanks to CSIcorrespondent for beta reading this! Read, enjoy and PLEASE REVIEW!

Chapter 4

A fresh December snow was falling one Sunday morning. Christmas was coming closer, and everyone was getting excited for the Christmas break. There was only one day left until the halls would be quiet and most of the students would leave to be with family and friends.

"So you're leaving too, Lucy?" Alice asked as they headed into the Great Hall.

"I'm going to France to see family there. I wish I could take you along, but there's six of us going as it is," Lucy explained, looking sadly at Alice.

"It's okay. I'll be fine by myself. My father is away on business and stuck in Japan for the next month and a half."

"It's still a shame though that you'll be alone on Christmas. I really do wish I could do something to help."

"You're a good friend Lucy, but I'm sure I'll be fine," Alice said, trying to smile.

Lucy fiddled with her headband, her unruly brown curls sticking out. "Well, is anyone else staying behind?"

"Vincent said he was going somewhere, Scorpius is going home, and Rose and her family are spending Christmas at her Uncle Harry's place with Albus and James."

"So there's really going to be no one to spend time with…"

"Yes, but I keep telling you it'll be fine! I can take care of myself."

"Oh, poor Alice! All by yourself at the happiest time of the year," the brunette sniffled, her eyes watering slightly.

"Lucy…" Alice growled irritably, rubbing her forehead.

"Okay, okay! I'll stop!" Lucy backed off slowly, and then jumped into another topic. "So, what's with you and Scorpius? You seem to hang out with him all the time now. Vincent's quite upset about it you know."

"Oh I know, Lucy. You've mentioned it several times over the past few months, and Vincent keeps pestering me! He's just my friend who happens to show up at every inconvenient moment," Alice said sitting down at one of the tables. Groaning, she saw Scorpius walk in and look directly at her. _Well speak of the devil. _He appeared to be in a rush, like he wanted to tell her something important.

"Hello Mr. Malfoy!" Lucy said cheerfully.

"Hi Lucy," Scorpius said quickly, turning his attention to Alice. "C-can I talk to you for a moment?"

"You just did."

"I-I mean outside, alone," Scorpius clarified.

Lucy grinned at Alice as she got up and followed Scorpius out of the Great Hall.

"Okay," she said once they were outside. "What's so important?"

"Well, you see… I heard from Rose who heard from Albus who heard from Lucy that you were going to be alone here for Christmas," Scorpius said in one breath.

Alice sighed. "You feel sorry for me right?"

"No!" Scorpius said loudly. "Well, sort of. Anyway, I talked to my father and you're coming with me."

"What?" Alice asked stunned.

"You're coming with me to my house for Christmas," Scorpius explained, smiling.

"Why?"

"My father wants to meet you. I've been telling him about you in my letters." _Not to mention I'm curious to see how you know about him_, he thought.

"But I-"

"You can't say no. Would you rather spend Christmas alone in this dreary place or have some fun?"

"With people I don't even know?" Alice sighed.

"Come on. It'll be fun." _And I may be able to get to the bottom of this…_

"I don't like you when you're spontaneous."

"My parents don't mind," Scorpius persisted.

Alice shook her head violently. "It wouldn't look right. I'm a girl!"

"What's wrong with that?"

"They may get the wrong idea and…"

"No. I've told them you aren't my girlfriend and that you have no interest in me at all whatsoever."

"Oh, well that makes me feel so much better!" Alice said sarcastically. _You must have failed to mention kissing me in the middle of a freaking rainstorm!_

"My father also contacted your father. They sent letters and agreed that it would be better for you to come and stay with us than to stay here alone."

"Prove it."

Scorpius dug around in his pocket and pulled out a small letter. He handed it to Alice, who looked it over.

"It's addressed specifically to me. What did you do?"

"I just got your post for you. Read it."

She read the letter thoroughly once, then a second time. It was from her father, stating exactly what Scorpius had explained to her.

"That's his signature," Alice said to herself, her eyes carefully scanning the delicate signature of her father, Thomas Henderson.

Enclosed in the letter were two small, fragile silver hairpins, each with an ornate cherry blossom flower of sapphire petals with metal silver tips. Two leaves beneath each flower were made of emerald. Spiraling down to the other end of the pins were sapphire and diamond beads. After examining them Alice noticed a small crystal of amethyst in the center of each cherry blossom. It looked rather odd, clashing with the blue surrounding it.

"They're very pretty," Scorpius said in awe.

"It's what I wanted from Japan. I can't believe he actually found it. Two even!" She clasped them delicately in her hand, slightly tearing up.

Scorpius looked uncomfortably at her, watching tears start to fall down her face. "Is that enough proof?" he asked quietly.

"Yes," Alice sniffed, wiping her tears with her free hand.

"That's good. I- I guess I'll see you tomorrow morning then," he said, nodding politely and slowly walking away.

Alice hurried back into the Great Hall to eat breakfast and show Lucy her father's letter.

:

The next morning Alice was up bright and early, her bags packed and ready to go. She headed through the school with a pleasant grin on her face, still on a high from the previous day. Her new hairpins were tucked in her hair, keeping any stray tendrils out of her face.

Scorpius was waiting for her in the entrance hall with his bags by his feet. Students bombarded past him to get outside to the carriages that would take them to Hogsmeade. Shortly after, Alice appeared at the top of the stairs and hurried down.

"Let's go!" Scorpius exclaimed happily.

They got into one of the carriages and traveled to Hogsmeade. From there, several groups of students, as well as Alice and Scorpius, hopped on to the train. Scorpius explained to Alice that they were meeting his parents in Diagon Alley at the Leaky Cauldron. She wondered briefly out loud why they weren't just going to take a portkey.

"Dad said that the Daily Prophet has been notified of disappearances with people using portkeys. That's why there are so many people on here right now. Usually we'd go the simpler way by using a portkey," Scorpius explained.

"I don't read the papers, so I wouldn't have known," Alice replied, sighing at the idea of the trip ahead of them.

"We'll be there soon though," Scorpius said while resting a hand on her shoulder in assurance, letting it slip away a few moments later.

Alice stared out of their compartment and into the hallway. She was waiting for the food cart to come seeing as she hadn't had time to eat breakfast. After five minutes her hunger got the best of her and she got up, looking down the hallway. She fell back into her seat and sighed, as the food cart was finally coming closer to their compartment. Once there, Alice stocked up on goodies.

As the food cart was being pushed away, Alice noticed Vincent walk past, glaring at her. She immediately turned away and opened a sandwich container, stuffing a piece into her mouth. After devouring the entire sandwich, she got up again and shut the door.

"You saw him didn't you?" Scorpius growled.

"He didn't know I was going with you, so of course he'd be mad."

"If he comes in here…" Scorpius made a fist.

"You won't do anything. You interfere and that will make him even angrier." She turned to face the window, dropping the subject immediately.

It wasn't long until they arrived at King's Cross. After collecting their luggage, they made their way to the Leaky Cauldron to meet Scorpius' parents.

Sitting inside in the far corner of the room was an older couple. The woman was dressed in a green dress suit and black high heels, her graying ginger hair pinned up in a loose bun. The man sitting at the table had slightly white hair, but for the most part was a light blonde. He was wearing a black suit and dress shoes, reading a paper and looking at his watch.

Suddenly there was a loud shriek.

"Scorpius! Darling!" The ginger haired woman got up from her seat and hurled herself at Scorpius, hugging him until he couldn't breathe.

"M-mother… please…" Scorpius gasped, dropping his bags to the ground.

"You must be Alice?" The man came towards her and shook her hand.

"Yes," Alice said quietly, slightly embarrassed by the scene taking place between Scorpius and his mother. "It's nice to meet you, Mr. Malfoy."

"Draco, aren't you happy to see your beautiful son?" the woman gushed, finally letting her child breathe.

"Yes, Astoria," Draco said, sighing and shaking his head before turning to his son. "Good to see you again Scorpius."

Alice looked at Scorpius and Draco. Even though they were father and son, they looked very much alike. If they were the same height and age, they would most likely look identical.

"So this is the girl you've been writing us about," Draco said, as he and his wife stared at Alice intently.

"Uh, yeah," Scorpius said, realizing Alice was slightly uncomfortable with them. "Come on Alice, let's sit down."

"Actually now that you've arrived, we were going to walk around Diagon Alley before heading home. Is that okay with you, Alice?" Draco said, smiling slightly.

"Y-yes, that's fine," Alice replied shyly.

"We'll take your bags." Draco took Alice's bag out of her hands and strolled out of the Leaky Cauldron, his son and wife following close behind.

Alice followed them into Diagon Alley, careful to keep close. The streets were busy with cheery shoppers, making purchases for friends and family.

"So, Scorpius tells me you've heard of me. May I ask how exactly?" Draco questioned Alice.

"My mother told me about you when I was younger. She told me everything she possibly could about you. One day before she died, she told me that if I was lucky, I'd run into your son. Apparently, I was lucky," Alice explained, glancing briefly at Scorpius.

"I don't recall anyone that I knew from school pass on after the war," Draco thought.

"My mother's name was Pansy, maiden name Parkinson," Alice said, looking up at Draco.

"She died?" Astoria was stunned. Draco just gazed at Alice.

"I only heard that she disappeared several years ago and was never found. They proclaimed her dead?" Draco gasped.

"That's what my father said," Alice explained.

"But… you look absolutely nothing like her," Draco said in awe, staring intently at Alice.

Alice kept silent for a while, trying to avoid the touchy subject about her mother. They stopped at Flourish and Blotts so Astoria could get her fix of romance novels. After spending an agonizing half hour in the bookstore, Alice decided to step outside for some air. Scorpius followed her, and they stood quietly for a few minutes looking around at the people passing by.

Then, Alice's gaze came across someone walking towards her who looked familiar. He was an older man with shoulder length blonde hair and square black rimmed glasses, with green eyes. As he got closer Alice began to recognize him even more.

Scorpius noticed her start towards the man, and suddenly stop. The man had disappeared within the crowd of people. She slowly and sadly returned to Scorpius' side.

"Who did you see?" he asked.

"My father…" she sighed weakly.

:

It wasn't long before they left Diagon Alley and made it to the Malfoy home. It was quite large, as Alice had expected. Dark gray brick covered the outside along with green moss creeping up the walls. Inside, the floors and staircases were made of mahogany and antique furniture and accessories were present throughout every room, giving the entire house a warm feeling.

"You'll be sleeping here," Draco told Alice and opened the door to the guest room for her.

"Thank you," she said shyly, sliding past him to enter the room.

It looked similar to her space in the Ravenclaw dormitory at Hogwarts, but slightly more luxurious and roomy for a single person. She looked out the large window and saw the sky clouding over.

"Feel free to come downstairs whenever you like," Draco said, letting the door shut softly behind him.

She got her belongings set out and organized, then headed downstairs. The rest of the evening she decided to spend sitting quietly on the living room couch reading a book by the fireplace. Scorpius was playing chess with his father while Astoria gushed over her romance novels. Every once in a while she would let out a slight-yet-annoying squeal of excitement, and the others would turn to her and glare. Eventually, Draco and Astoria headed up to bed, leaving Alice and Scorpius alone.

Scorpius yawned widely. "I should head up soon. It's getting late."

"It is…" Alice snapped her book shut.

"Are you okay here?" Scorpius asked.

"Yes. It's nice here, and I feel welcome," Alice replied softly, setting her book on the coffee table.

"That's good," he smiled, getting up and stretching. "Well, I'm going to bed."

Alice nodded slowly. "I guess I will too."

Suddenly, there was a loud knock on the door, startling both of them.

"Who the hell?" Scorpius groaned, storming over to the door. He unfastened the lock and swung the door open in a rage.

"Where is she?" a hooded man's shaky voice asked.

"I'm sorry, but you are?" Scorpius asked irritably.

As he stepped towards the light , his face was illuminated. "Dad!" Alice cried, running towards the long blonde haired man standing in the doorway.

"Alice!" the man said happily, hugging her tightly. He coughed slightly and shivered.

"I thought you were in Japan for several more weeks," Alice stated, frowning with a slight confusion.

"I decided to come and see you for a bit," her father said, coughing into his hands.

"Are you okay Mr. Henderson?" Scorpius asked, closing the door behind him.

"I-I'm fine," he choked.

"No you aren't!" Alice exclaimed seeing blood on his hands.

"I said I'm FINE!" cackled her father, his deep voice changing pitch. His body collapsed to the floor and a black smoke began to rise up from him. Gashes randomly appeared on his arms and legs where the smoke had been rising, leaking blood on the floor. A black cloaked figure formed from the smoke.

Scorpius stood in front of Alice, who fell to her knees crying, trying to reach over to her father. "Who the hell are you, and what do you want with us?"

"Oh, I don't need you," the hooded person howled. "I just want the girl. Consider yourself lucky, Malfoy!"

Alice looked down at the feet of the cloaked individual. Her father's bloody body lay on the floor. Her head started spinning, trying not to believe what was happening.

_Why do these things happen? I just want it to stop!_

The dark figure shoved Scorpius aside with ease, quickly casting a spell to hold the boy back. Alice's scream caught in her throat as the person grabbed her neck with a strong youthful hand. Fangs were exposed from his mouth and he sunk them deep into Alice's neckline. He released her with his lips dripping blood, snapped his fingers and a strong tunnel of black wind surrounded him and Alice. Scorpius stared at them as they disappeared from sight, the barrier releasing him shortly after.

:

Several hours later Alice woke up. _What happened? Where am I?_ She tried to think back, but her brain refused to cooperate. The only she did know is that she wasn't with Scorpius any longer.

She tried to move around, but realized that she was blindfolded and tied up to something. Unfortunately, she couldn't do anything about it since she had left her wand behind.

She could hear people moving about her, their feet shuffling and murmurs coming from around her. She could feel the fear building inside of her, and her breathing increased at the thought of finding out who she was with. Suddenly she felt her blindfold being removed and her eyes were assaulted by a bright light.

"Finally, pretty little girl, we've got you," a skinny, pale man hissed at her. He had on ratty clothes and looked like a hobo. One eye was covered with a patch, while the other glared at her intensely.

Alice looked around her and noticed that she was in a small, rundown wooden shack with a dirt floor. There were holes in the walls, letting air flow through and rain soak the ground.

The door opened and a hooded person walked in. He headed directly towards Alice, keeping his head down.

With one hand he grasped onto her neck and spoke angrily. "You're mine now, and no one can do anything about it. Your pathetic parents are both dead, and that stupid boy can't do a thing to help you. Not here." Alice struggled as the grip on her throat got tighter, and kicked at him.

Her vision slowly started to blur, and she tried desperately to breathe. Suddenly, there was a loud crash that destroyed a wall in the room. There were thundering yells and rushing around. Alice tried to focus on what was happening, but felt herself starting to fade away.

"Hello shitheads!" a cold voice hissed. "Are you ready to die?"

As her vision became even more distorted, Alice almost thought she saw a recognizable face.

_Vincent?_


	5. Revelation

Disclaimer: I am not J. K. Rowling, nor do I own any part of the Harry Potter series.

A/N: Finally, chapter 5! This would've been up sooner, but I've gotten busy with my second year of college. From now on it will be slow going for the next few chapters, due to college, but they will get posted eventually! Read and review!

Chapter 5

There was a cool breeze flowing throughout the small room, creating an undisturbed chilly atmosphere. She could feel it on her face, but the rest of her body was warm and wrapped up like a cocoon. Slowly opening her eyes, she realized she was in a bed covered in big fluffy white blankets. The room was bright, but a rainy gray sky appeared outside the open window.

_I'm still alive? _

She looked around the room once more, still groggy. Spotting a clock on the other side of the bed, she reached across trying to grab it. It was eight in the morning. She rolled back into the covers and soon fell back asleep.

The door slowly creaked open and a pale-faced young man entered. His deep blue eyes looked red and exhausted. Dragging his fingers through his long dark hair he yawned as sleep settled its heavy weight upon him. He sat down on the edge of the bed next to the clock and looked at the time.

"It's early," he said softly to himself.

He shivered as he removed his mud caked white t-shirt and let it drop to the floor. He dusted off his pants, debating whether to sleep in them or not. Coming to the decision that he really didn't care, he simply unhooked the chained pocket watch from his belt loop and set it on the bedside table. Warmth consumed him as he slid underneath the covers and fell asleep.

:

Four hours passed before Alice woke again. The world outside was dark and rainy. She couldn't help but begin to worry about where she was and what had happened. _Is Scorpius and his family okay? Is my father really dead?_ She turned onto her side, facing away from the other side of the bed.

She suddenly felt something move across her side and drag her towards the middle of the bed. She felt warm breath against the back of her neck as the person sighed. Alice pulled herself away and jumped out of bed, standing on the cold wood floor.

"Y-you're awake…" a voice said groggily from beneath the blankets.

Alice stepped back alarmed. "Who are you?"

"The man that saved you from your new enemies!" he said, smiling at her and crawling out of bed.

She looked at the shirtless young man now standing in front of her. His long black hair was in his eyes with intense blue eyes examining her, and his slender face and upper body gave him certain innocence. Alice recognized his appearance, but her memory was fuzzy as she tried to remember him. She suddenly noticed a small glint of light coming from his right eyebrow, a piercing. _Tristan?_

"My name is Tristan Stroh," the boy said, introducing himself.

"I'm-"

"Alice Henderson."

"How do you know my name?" she asked cautiously.

"Long story short, your father told me."

"You know my father?"

He laughed under his breath. "Looks like I'm not gonna get anymore sleep. I'll explain it to you after I shower and get something to eat."

Alice sat on the bed and watched him as he headed through another door leading to the bathroom. Now was her time to escape, but she didn't even know where in the world she was. All she had were the clothes she was wearing. Her belongings, books, extra clothes and, most importantly, her wand, were all with Scorpius. She concluded that there was no reason to run, as she had no place to go.

She was startled out of her thoughts as Tristan opened the door. He walked out half naked with a crimson towel around his waist; his hair was soaked and unkempt, dripping water. Alice stared at the boy who resembled a drowned puppy as he paid little attention to her, digging through dresser drawers and flipping through the clothes on the top row of his closet. He was about to remove the towel but turned around, finally noticing she was still in the room.

"Oh, sorry… I forgot. I'm not used to other people being here," he said uneasily, his cheeks reddening as he gripped the towel closer.

"It's okay. May I use the bathroom?" Alice asked.

"Go ahead. Oh, but if you're going to shower, I suggest we get you some clean clothes."

Alice nodded slightly. Tristan looked curiously at her for a moment, and then started browsing the bottom row of clothes in his closet.

"I hope these will fit," he said, tossing out a pair of ripped black jeans and a two tone gray vertical pinstriped dress shirt. "If they don't we'll have to try something else. Towels are underneath the sink."

Alice gathered up the clothes and headed into the bathroom. After showering she changed and exited the bathroom, looking around the bedroom. Tristan was nowhere to be found but the bed was now made and the space looked spotless. She walked out of the room and headed down a small flight of stairs.

Hearing rustling and clinking nearby she headed into a small but cozy looking living room. The walls were painted a warm olive green and a red brick fireplace was against one wall, cluttered with picture frames and candles. A crimson sofa sat adjacent below a large window where dark crimson curtains shielded the room from incoming light. There was a small armchair positioned in the opposite corner, and a long black framed coffee table with a glass top stood in the middle of the room. Several more pictures hung on the walls, intermingling with antique wall lamps.

"I'm in the kitchen!" she heard Tristan holler from the next room.

She wandered into the cerulean blue kitchen and found him setting waffles and bacon on the round birch table in the corner of the room. He had dried and spiked his hair while she had been in the bathroom, and Alice noticed that he was wearing just a hint of black eyeliner, only discernable from a short distance away. It seemed unusual for someone who looked like him to be cooking, and Alice smiled with slight amusement.

"Sit down," Tristan said happily, showing a childish grin.

She did as told and sat down in a chair with a plate in front of her, waiting for him. By the time he did sit down there was more than enough food for just two people, and Alice's mouth watered as she tossed two waffles and some bacon on her plate. Tristan got up again as the teapot on the stove hissed.

"Do you want tea?" he asked politely.

"No thank you. I don't really like tea."

"Coffee then?"

"No thanks. I don't really like coffee either."

"Do you want anything to drink?"

"I'm fine."

He sat back down with a cup of orange tea. "Sorry if I'm scaring you. I'm just not used to someone else being her. Your father was rarely here, and when he was it was only for a few days at a time," Tristan explained, pausing to sip his tea. "When he was around, he did the cooking. I hope I'm at least half the cook your father was." He looked across the table at her.

"This is good…" she replied slowly. She squeezed her eyes tightly and shook her head, trying to get her father out of her mind. This was not the time to get upset. She didn't want to cry in front of this boy, this stranger.

"I'm sorry. I should've known you would be sensitive to the topic. Your… I mean, he told me so."

There was a concerned expression on his face when she opened her eyes. "I want to know… everything."

"First get something in your stomach. You haven't eaten in at least a day I'd assume."

"How long was I out for?" she asked, swallowing down a piece of waffle.

"About eight hours after I picked you up," he answered, draining the rest of his tea.

"So then we traveled for four hours?"

"Right now, we're not in the vicinity of England. Believe me; if they find us we're screwed."

"We aren't in England?"

"Nope."

"Where are we then?"

"I can't tell you yet. You'll find out eventually," he answered cryptically.

They soon finished eating and cleaned up the dishes and leftover food. Afterwards they headed into the living room so Tristan could explain what was going on.

:

He opened the curtains to let in some more light, and then sat down in a crimson armchair. "So, what do you want to know?"

"Firstly, how do you know my father?" Alice asked impatiently, sitting down on the couch.

"I met your father shortly after you started your first year at that wizard school. I was twelve. My parents had just been killed in an accident in Paris. Your father came to the orphanage I was being housed at and took me in for the time you were at school. He later turned out to be one of my mothers' good friends, whom my father used to work with," Tristan explained. "I accompanied him to numerous places. Shortly before you returned to your home for the summer, he got me this small place to live. He told me that it wasn't right for me to meet you quite yet."

"So you've been here for the past five years? My father never even mentioned you to me."

"He never wanted you to know. So…" he continued. "Your father paid for me to live here during the summer. He would visit me every once in a while, without you, and apparently told you he had to 'work'."

"He did leave every once in while…" Alice agreed.

"Anyway, after about two years he appointed me as his assistant, which was my former father's position. I was to help him in finding certain artifacts around the world. Every year when you headed back to school he would come here and we'd try to track down these unusual objects. Once we pinpointed a small area, he'd leave again and I was alone for several weeks while he tracked the item down."

"You mean my father had a double life? I knew he worked a lot while I was at school, but the way you're talking about him…"

"It was his job. But, I did…do consider him to be like a second father. A better father by far, though I spent a lot of time alone. He cared for me like my father never did. Even when Tom wasn't around, he sent letters and told me about his journeys. He even mentioned you sometimes. He cared enough to include me," he said, pausing for a moment before continuing. "Now, may I ask you a question?"

"Go ahead."

"Exactly how much do you know about your father's profession?"

Alice never thought she'd be asked a question like this, but then again she never expected she'd be told so much about her father that she didn't already know. It was almost as if he was a stranger to her. He was the only family member she had after the age of seven, as far as she knew, up until his death. "He worked for numerous museums around the world, traveling and finding items. He basically did everything you told me."

"In the muggle world?" Tristan questioned lightly.

"Yes. He was born a muggle and didn't possess any magical abilities that I know of."

"That's not exactly the case."

Alice frowned. "But he's registered as a muggle in the records. My mother showed them to me when I was little. I found out my mother had magical abilities when I was very young. She explained to me what it was and showed me the records that proved she had magic and my father didn't."

"You two were both fooled. He may not have been considered a wizard by the standards of your world of wand carriers. People like him are hardly recognized, integrated as muggles and usually unaware of the magic they possess."

Alice gasped in awe. "You mean that my father held his magical powers from everyone for his entire life? I don't believe you."

"No. He didn't hide them. You just didn't notice. He forced you to go to a magical school to help your own powers grow. After your mother passed, didn't you wonder why a _muggle_ like him forced you into a Wizarding school? He could've just put you into a regular boarding school like all the other muggles and pretend your magic didn't exist."

"Why? Why are you telling me this?" Alice asked painfully, her world being turned upside down.

"You wanted to know!" he snapped. "At this point, you need to know."

"Keep going then," Alice sighed, somewhat irritably.

"He told me that he was working on both sides, with the muggle world and the Wizarding world, trying to find artifacts which were mostly non-magical. When he was away from his work, he kept talking about specific items that a certain group of dark wizards wanted in their possession. He didn't tell me much, but said that he wanted to find the items and keep them away from these dark wizards. As far as I am concerned, they are the ones who kidnapped you the other day."

"How do you know it was them? How did you find me?"

"I don't exactly know. There isn't really a way we can tell for sure that they were the wizards your father was concerned about. As for finding you… those hairpins your father sent you have a Wizarding tracking device on them. Actually, speaking of those hairpins, where are they?"

"I don't know. They weren't in my hair when I woke up."

"If they took them they may be able to find us." He looked out the window nervously.

Alice frowned, trying to think. "Wait! I took them out when I was at Scorpius' house. They're in my bag."

"As long as he didn't turn them over to anyone then…"

"So my hairpins can track people down?"Alice asked, somewhat confused.

"Yes. I'll show you later so we can figure out if they're where you left them. I pray that they are," Tristan sighed. "Anyways, your father is not a muggle, his profession does include looking for magical objects and he definitely didn't intend on you meeting me. Now, onto the things you should know about yourself."

"This is so overwhelming right now."

"It's going to get worse. As I said, the people that have your father's type of magic generally don't know, or pretend to be muggles. I've got a book that lists all the names of the people who have possessed this form of magic from the first date of use. Your father is among a few of the most recent entries, as there are very few of his kind. Because your mother was a wand-using witch, and her powers were passed onto you, you have the possibility of being able to use two types of magic, wand magic and… I'll just call it 'free magic' for now. I'll have to test you to determine if you actually do have this magic."

"How do you do that?" she asked worriedly, biting her lip.

"You'll find out soon enough."

"But…"

"It won't hurt you."

Alice sighed in relief. She was afraid of pain, not the emotional kind, but physical.

"Anyway, so this 'free magic' comes in different forms. Usually the magic is used alongside weapons, determined by the magic itself. It is most effective in this form. The magic can be weaponless, but it is significantly weaker. I know this sounds stupid to you, but it is how it was found to be years ago. I've studied up on this."

"No, it just sounds like something out of a muggle fantasy novel or video game. Somewhat unbelievable, but considering you knew my father I'll try to believe you."

Tristan nodded, continuing. "Other names for 'free magic' could be black or white magic; black magic being assault magic, white magic being healing. It must be used carefully, and directed only at your opponent, or in the case of healing magic your ally." He was now staring her directly in the eyes, as if trying to penetrate through her.

She closed her eyes to block his gaze. "What are the chances that I have the ability to use this type of magic?"

"It's a fifty-fifty chance. If your mother hadn't have been a wand user, it would be more likely. Oh I almost forgot, there's an article here about your father. You may want to read it." He handed her a newspaper.

Alice scanned the article and saw unrecognizable words. "I can't read this. It's not in English."

"That's right! Sorry, it's a local Swedish paper. I can translate if you'd like."

"You mean we're in Sweden?" Alice asked, astonished.

"Yes. After traveling with your father and moving here, I decided to learn Swedish to fit in better. Later, as I had nothing better to do when alone, I took up the hobby of teaching myself foreign languages. I know English, French, Russian, Swedish, Norwegian, and I'm working on Japanese, Chinese and Korean simultaneously."

"Don't you get them confused?"

"Not really. I sort of learned English as a second language. I'm originally from Austria."

Alice quirked an eyebrow, slightly interested. "I wouldn't have figured that from hearing you speak. You sound like any regular English person."

"That's because my mother taught me English when I was growing up. She hardly ever spoke Austrian, but my father always did. Sometimes I end up throwing random Austrian phrases in with my English since I learned both languages almost at the same time, but other than that I generally don't have a problem with speaking other languages."

"You're perfect," Alice stated plainly.

"What?"

"There's nothing wrong with you. You're perfect. You can cook, you're multilingual, and you know a hell of a lot more than I do about my father. Not to mention that you live here by yourself and can carry on a conversation for hours. You can't do anything wrong from what I've seen."

Tristan laughed, shaking his head. "I'm a whole lot more fucked up than you think. You just wait and see. You're going to be here for quite some time, and things will get weird."

"By weird you mean…?"

"You'll see."

"Actually, about me being here… am I going back to school after the holidays?"

"Your father wanted you to, so I guess I'll let you go. Unless they find us, you'll be going back to your friends," Tristan said.

"You're lonely aren't you?" Alice observed the glum look on his face.

"Sometimes. It's not that bad though. I've pretty much lived alone here for five years. Besides, I'm only forty minutes away from town and I have acquaintances there. They help me when I need them." His voice drifted off as he stared out the window.

Alice nodded, deciding not to push the subject any further.

:

"Scorpius, do you have any idea what happened to her?" Draco asked his son at the breakfast table.

"Not really. I just saw what I told you! Why do you keep bothering me about this?" Scorpius moaned over his toast.

"We know you care about her. She's your friend," his father said, nodding. "But, it's a little unusual how the papers reported that her father died in Japan in broad daylight a week before he showed up here."

"Maybe there's something going on that we don't know about."

"The Daily Prophet has said that dark wizards are behind this. I just hope that Alice is okay."

"Draco," Astoria started softly, her voice quivering. "Do you think this is the beginning of another war?"

"War?" Scorpius burst out, standing up from his seat.

"Maybe the dark lord wasn't defeated as we had believed." Astoria sighed, pushing Scorpius back down into his seat.

"It can't be." Draco shook his head solemnly, dropping the conversation at once.


	6. Departure

Disclaimer: I am not J.K. Rowling and do not own Harry Potter.

A/N: You're in luck! I've managed to whip up this short chapter for you guys. I'll try to write some more chapters during my free time (if I get any), however they will most likely be short. I don't know how often I'll be updating, but I will post as much as I can. Thanks to CSIcorresspondent for continuing to be my beta! Read and review!

Chapter 6

A few weeks later after Alice had somewhat adjusted to her new life, Tristan decided to finally determine if she did have the same magic abilities as her father. At first, he said they should wait but, after receiving a package one morning, he changed his mind.

Alice opened the bedroom door one night to find Tristan passed out in the middle of the bed, still fully clothed. She shook her head disappointedly and went into the bathroom to wash her face. _He's finally taking a break._

Tristan had been staying up late to do research every night since she had gotten there. He was trying to find out about the new dark wizard group who had suddenly appeared out of nowhere. The wizarding newspapers were mentioning everything that they could to warn people to avoid the places where there had been sightings. It was too random…too odd for a force like this to just pop up. Alice, however, was more worried about Tristan since he had started to lock himself in his study for hours at a time. She hardly ever saw him over the time that had passed. He would join her for meals, but then head back upstairs to lock himself away. She would even hear him in the middle of the night unlocking the door and heading to bed, shuffling tiredly across the floor and down the stairs to the couch. Those were the times she knew he had fallen asleep at his desk, and that he was running himself down.

She came out of the bathroom a few moments later. He was still passed out, his face looking drained of energy, and his body didn't flinch as she tried to move quietly about the room. She wondered if he had found anything as she found some blankets in a storage chest near the door.

"Tristan…" she sighed hopelessly to him as she covered him with one of the blankets, and then headed over to the bedside table to turn off the lamp. She stepped out of the room with another blanket under her arm.

Walking slowly down the hallway she noticed that there was a light on in his study. She went in to turn it off and leave, but then found herself sitting in the chair in front of the desk. The walls were covered in shelves of books, and there was a large window in front of the desk, looking out at the dark blue sky.

She scanned the contents on the desk. Numerous articles in different languages, relating to the happenings in the Wizarding world and the dark wizards, were cut out of papers and piled in several tall stacks on the floor. Pens, pencils and highlighters were everywhere amongst file folders, candles, and books.

She saw a glint behind one of the books on the desk. Picking it up, she saw a familiar looking silver flower. It was a cherry blossom, exactly like the hairpins her father had sent her, only smaller and completely silver with sapphire blue tips. It looked almost like a pendant, and instead of an amethyst center there was a sapphire crystal. She examined it in her hand, and saw that it was more like a locket than a simple pendant. Snapping it open she looked inside. It was bare.

She closed it quickly and then gazed at the sapphire in the center. It appeared to be slowly changing color. It changed to a deep navy, then back to sapphire, and then to a plain white crystal.

The light flickered off and white light flooded the room. It became almost unbearably cold, and as the light faded, a mist hung throughout the small room.

She suddenly felt herself tip backwards in the chair and fall to the floor. The crystal was now pulsing with a faint blue light. The locket flew out of her hand as she was pulled up off the floor and shoved out of the room.

"What were you doing in here?" Tristan raged in the dark.

Alice recognized his voice, shivering slightly at his tone. "I was just going downstairs and I saw that the light was on and I wanted to shut it off. I'm sorry if I wasn't supposed to go in, but you didn't say I couldn't."

"I-I…" Tristan could barely speak; his gaze was focused on the object on the floor, flashing light.

"What's wrong?" Alice asked him in a slight panic.

He raced back into the study and picked up the locket. Alice could see in the light that his eyes were tired and sore, but they were as wide as he could get them. "You did this?" He pointed to the locket.

"It just started glowing! I didn't do anything but pick it up!" Alice stated, pleading her case.

Digging through the shelves he pulled out a large brown leather book. He opened it and flipped a few pages in. Pointing at the last thing on the page, he motioned Alice to come over. She looked at the book, and noticed her name above his finger.

"You've got a lot to worry about now. You have two types of magic," Tristan said as the light from the accessory in his other hand faded away.

The lamp turned on again. Tristan yawned widely.

"You should go back to sleep," Alice said softly.

He shuffled out of the room as she turned off the lamp. She followed him to make sure he went back to sleep. Once he was out, she quietly sneaked downstairs to sleep on the couch for the remainder of the night.

:

The next morning marked the day Alice was to return to Hogwarts. She had little to pack, just a few belongings that she happened to get during her stay with Tristan. One moment she was excited to be returning to school, to a schedule, but the next she was disheartened to leave the young man who had taken care of her over these past few weeks. She would leave freedom behind; she would leave her father behind.

Tristan dragged out a fair-sized trunk from his closet. Opening it revealed its emptiness, tiny compartments within covered in dust.

Alice walked in the room and towards him with a puzzled look on her face. "What are you doing?"

"Packing," he said simply.

"Why?"

"Isn't it rather obvious? I'm leaving."

"Where are you going?"

Tristan sighed heavily. "I'm going to Japan. I have some research to do there in regards to your father's death."

"Isn't it a little late for that though? It's been almost a month."

"I decided to wait until you left for school again."

"Oh," Alice said, turning away to leave the room.

"Are you almost ready to go?" he asked as she stood in the doorway.

"Yeah. I'm ready."

"We're leaving in fifteen minutes."

Alice nodded and headed back downstairs.

About fifteen minutes later Tristan came down, his trunk now doll sized in his hand.

"Hope you don't mind the cold. We're taking my bike," Tristan smiled.

"In the middle of winter? We'll freeze!" Alice gasped.

"It's only to the nearest portkey."

"Where's that?"

"Four miles away. Not far."

Alice sighed heavily and followed him out the door.

They traveled the four miles in the freezing winter air. Nervousness spread through Alice, who tightly gripped Tristan's jacket, fearing that she would fall off the motorcycle.

Once they arrived and touched the portkey they were transported to King's Cross. They made their way to Platform 9 ¾ and jumped through the barrier.

"Well, you should get on the train now." Tristan noticed the steam rolling from the train.

"Yeah…" Alice said breathily. "Thank you for all you've done. Good luck in Japan."

"I'll write to you," Tristan smiled slightly. He wrapped his arms around her tightly. "Be careful."

Alice nodded and turned away, heading towards the train. She turned back momentarily to wave goodbye and could see him smiling back at her. It wouldn't be the last she'd see of him, or so she hoped.

As she entered the train she was immediately pulled into a compartment.

"Alice!" Scorpius said cheerfully, hugging her. "You're safe."

"I'm fine. I would've written to you, but I didn't-" she started.

"I don't care! I'm just glad you're alright!"

Alice sat down and was silent. How was she going to explain to him what happened? What could she explain to him? Should she tell him about her father, her powers, Tristan? Questions consumed her mind, but no answered surfaced.

Scorpius broke her thoughts. "Who was that weird looking guy you were with? It was a guy right?"

"Yes. His name is Tristan. He was a friend of my father's. I lived with him over the break after he found me," Alice explained quickly, attempting to shut the conversation down.

"Oh, I see." Scorpius looked at the floor. "Alone?"

"What?"

"You lived with only him."

"Yes. Why should that matter?"

"No reason… So your father is really dead…"

"Yes. He's not coming back. Now all I have left is Tristan."

"And me!"

"Yes… you too."

:

"You've failed!" A deep voice said harshly, echoing throughout the dungeons of Hogwarts.

"I'm sorry master… I thought that I could finally get her. We were so close!" a woman's raspy voice said apologetically.

"'So close' doesn't cut it!"

"Brother! NO!" the woman's voice screamed.

Everything fell silent as the woman's dead, cloaked body fell to the ground, her wavy black hair blood soaked.

"Oh Mina… looks like I'm going to have to do this myself…" the man smiled, exposing fangs. He fiddled with a bloody knife in his hands. "Now… how do I rid this world of her?"


End file.
